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Claire Palmer (Murder In-Law)
Claire Palmer (Barbara Williams) is the main villainess from the 2019 Lifetime film, Murder In-Law (alternately titled, The Mother-In-Law; airdate March 15, 2019). She is the wife of retired detective Bruce Palmer and the mother of their only son, Jim Palmer. Introduction The film begins with the Palmers dining together, with Claire unleashing her habitual criticism towards Jim's wife, Allison Palmer (the film's main protagonist). The evening included Jim and Claire announcing that the former received a promotion and that they would be moving to New York in the summer, with Claire sitting silently in response while Bruce responded happily to the news. After dinner, Claire stared longingly at a photo of herself with Jim, with Bruce telling his wife that everything would be fine, while joking that Jim belonged to Allison now. He stated that it would just be the two of them alone, and he suggested a night of passion for them, with Claire seemingly agreeing. Heel Turn Bruce knocked on the bedroom door and asked Claire if she was decent, but once it opened, Claire turned heel and shoved her husband down a flight of stairs, killing him instantly. Following the murder, Claire placed Bruce's body inside the freezer, and later went to Jim and Allison's home sobbing over Bruce, claiming that he had left her for another woman. Her deception works on Jim's sympathies, as Jim and Sydney (the couple's teenage daughter) allowed Claire to stay with them, with Allison reluctantly agreeing. Allison was subject to more of Claire's criticism, and she would "sleepwalk" into their room when they were attempting to make love. The villainess continues her ruse when speaking to Bruce's former partner on the force, Will, painting Bruce as a cheating husband and even asking Will to look into Allison's friend Charlie, who she assumed was a man at the time. She also ran into Mariah, Jim's former girlfriend, and expressed her happiness over seeing her before setting up a dinner date between her and Jim. Allison had been venting to Charlie over Claire's behavior, and later on, she politely informed Claire about her stay at the house and made a suggestion that she should adapt to their routine. Later on, however, Claire had her bags packed and made a scene in front of Jim and Sydney, making a claim that Allison was kicking her out and feigning tears, with Jim and Sydney coming to her emotional aid. Claire continued her evil manipulation when she talked to Sydney about the move, stating that she could be bullied at high school as a new student, making her worry about the move. Claire later visited Charlie and introduced herself as Marilyn, claiming that she used to live at her house. After entering, Claire cryptically reveals her true colors and vents over her hatred of Allison, referring to her as ungrateful and disrespectful before revealing her true identity as Claire. Charlie realized she was talking to her friend's mother-in-law, who continued lashing out and stating that Allison wasn't appreciative over her planning their wedding, after which Charlie kicked her out. However, the evil Claire had figured out that Charlie was actually having an affair with her young pool boy, Bradley, and decided to blackmail Charlie into turning against Allison. While Claire listens over the phone with sadistic pleasure, Charlie lambasted Allison for her criticism about Claire; praising her while accusing Allison of being selfish and paranoid. She later invited Mariah into the house late one evening, with Allison catching Mariah and Jim together and voicing her outrage over Claire's set up, though Claire attempted to frame Allison as the one in the wrong by mentioning how Mariah had recently been diagnosed with a serious illness. Climax & Arrest Later on, Claire returned to Charlie's home, and upon entering, the deranged villainess bludgeoned Charlie to death with Allison's meat tenderizer. Afterwards, Claire and Allison dined together in a confrontational manner, with Allison telling Claire that she needed to treat her with respect if she wanted to stay in her home. Though Claire appeared to acquiesce, she was working on her plan to portray her daughter-in-law as a villainous psychopath, first by calling Will and feigning panic over Allison. She later entered the bedroom and wielded a knife towards Allison; chasing her and informing Allison that she was defending herself against her. Though Allison fought off Claire, Will appeared and ended up embraced by a "tearful" Claire, who claimed that Allison went crazy and threatened to kill her in the same fashion that she killed Charlie. Allison ended up taken into custody and interrogated; denying the claims and attempting to tell Will that Claire was behind everything, with Allison's statements falling on deaf ears due to Claire planting the meat tenderizer in Allison's closet. After Jim approached his wife, Allison told Jim to go to his parents' home, because she had a feeling that Claire may have killed her husband. Jim does and discovers his father's body in the freezer, and on the following day, Will, Jim, and Allison appeared at the house, with Will informing Claire that she would be arrested. The villainess' only response was despair over her broken china, and she was later shown in handcuffs as she was taken into custody. Trivia *Barbara Williams also appeared as the evil Muriel Walker in White House Down. Gallery Claire Palmer 2.png Claire Palmer Smirk.png|Claire's evil smirk over her manipulation Evil Claire Palmer.png Evil Claire Palmer 2.png|Claire eavesdropping while Charlie berates Allison Claire Palmer Knife.png|Claire wielding a knife Category:2010s Category:Attempted Murder Category:Blackmailer Category:Bondage Used On Villainess Category:Brunette Category:Callous Category:Deceiver Category:Delusional Category:Grandmother Category:Hero's Lover Category:Knife Category:Live Action Villainess Category:Makeshift Weapon Category:Master Manipulator Category:Mother Category:Murder: Bludgeoning Category:Murder: High Fall Category:Murderer Category:Psychotic Category:Sadist Category:Fate: Arrested